水(みず)かき

みずかき
noun
webbing (of webbed feet or hands)
animal-general
1. webbing (between the toes or fingers of an animal)
The membrane of skin stretched between the toes or fingers of water animals such as frogs, ducks, and otters, used to push against the water when swimming.
カエルには水(みず)かきがある。
Frogs have webbed feet.
アヒルは水(みず)かきで水(みず)をかいて泳(およ)ぐ。
Ducks swim by paddling the water with their webbed feet.
足(あし)の指(ゆび)の間(あいだ)にある水(みず)かきのおかげで、速(はや)く泳(およ)ぐことができる。
Thanks to the webbing between their toes, they can swim quickly.

Literally "water paddle," from 水(みず) (water) + かき (paddling, from 掻(か)く). The skin membrane between the digits of aquatic animals. The word for the diving equipment for humans is normally フィン or 足(あし)ひれ, not 水(みず)かき.

Common collocations

general
Added 2026.7.18 6:17 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
29500/29919_mizukaki